💥💥💥 What Backs USDT? Tether CEO Breaks Down #stablecoin Reserves

Tether Reveals Reserve Details Amid Allegations and Scrutiny

- Tether’s CEO, #PaoloArdoino , recently disclosed the stablecoin issuer’s reserve assets, revealing that Tether holds $5.58 billion in Bitcoin (BTC), $3.87 billion in gold, and around $100 billion in U.S. Treasury bonds.

Reserve Composition

- Speaking at the PlanB event in Lugano, Switzerland, where a statue of Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto was unveiled, Ardoino shared that Tether’s reserves consist of 82,454 $BTC and 48.3 tons of gold. Uquid CEO Tran Hung later posted a slide from the presentation on social media, sparking online discussions. One commenter questioned if these assets adequately back USDT’s $120 billion market cap. Ardoino clarified that Tether’s reserves also include significant U.S. Treasury holdings, complementing its gold and Bitcoin assets.

Allegations and Company Response

- This announcement comes amid a Wall Street Journal (#WSJ ) report alleging that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan is investigating Tether for potential money laundering violations. The report suggests authorities are probing whether Tether has been used to support illicit activities, potentially involving drug trafficking, terrorism financing, hacking, and support for sanctioned entities.

- Tether has denied these claims. In response, Ardoino stated, “As we told the WSJ, there is no indication that Tether is under investigation. WSJ is regurgitating old noise. Full stop.” He emphasized Tether’s cooperation with law enforcement, noting that since 2014, the company has helped recover over $109 million linked to criminal activities. Ardoino described the WSJ’s allegations as “unequivocally false.”

Ongoing Transparency Concerns

- The WSJ report heightened scrutiny of Tether's transparency and reserves, with Consumers' Research criticizing Tether’s lack of a full audit & raising concerns over its international operations, possibly enabling sanctions evasion in regions like Venezuela and Russia.